Paulo Thiago
Paulo Thiago is a UFC welterweight contender, with impressive wins over Josh Koscheck and Mike Swick. He lost his most recent fight to Martin Kampmann by dominant decision for only his second loss in his career. Thiago next faced Diego Sanchez and lost after an amazing back-and-forth fight via unanimous decision. The fight won Fight of the Night honors and in my book Fight of the Year honors. There were concerns that Thiago could have been cut after two straight losses. The concerns were rested after Thiago signed a new four-fight deal with the UFC. He is next rumored to face Dan Hardy. Both men are coming off of a pair of back-to-back losses and despite their high status in the welterweight rankings, it might be considered to be a loser-leaves-town matchup. He was next announced to be officially facing Johny Hendricks. He was injured very shortly after the matchup was announced however. Thiago next faced David Mitchell in his home country of Brazil. He defeated Mitchell via unanimous decision. Thiago was next set to face well-rounded veteran Mike Pyle, but he was unfortunately injured and replaced by returning veteran Ricardo Funch. After recovering, Thiago signed to face well-known kickboxer and UFC newcomer Siyar Bahadurzada. Bahadurzada knocked Thiago out in the first round. Thiago next faced Korean grappler Dong Hyun Kim on the UFC's first China show losing a dominant unanimous decision. After the second straight loss and the fourth loss in his last five fights, Thiago was in serious danger of being cut from the UFC roster. Thiago next fought UFC newcomer and late replacement Michel Prazeres, defeating Prazeres via a relatively close unanimous decision and undoubtedly saving his UFC career. Thiago next signed to welcome undefeated TUF winner Kelvin Gastelum to the welterweight division. Unfortunately Thiago was injured and replaced by Brian Melancon. After recovering Thiago signed to fight prospect Brandon Thatch. Thatch defeated Thiago via a prompt first round knockout. He then faced Gasan Umalatov losing via a unanimous decision putting him undeniably on the UFC's chopping block again. Thiago was next set to face Mike Rhodes who was injured and replaced by Bellator and UFC veteran Joe Riggs. Riggs unfortunately injured himself when his pistol discharged while he was cleaning it. Fights *Josh Koscheck vs. Paulo Thiago - The fight was then-undefeated Thiago's UFC debut. *Jon Fitch vs. Paulo Thiago - The fight was Thiago's first loss in his mixed martial arts career. *Paulo Thiago vs. Mike Swick - The fight was Mike Swick's second straight loss and his first submission loss. It was his last fight as a welterweight, replacing his injured teammate Josh Koscheck on short notice. He moved back up to middleweight after the loss. *Paulo Thiago vs. Martin Kampmann - The fight was a tremendous upset and probably the best fight for Martin Kampmann in his UFC career thus far. The fight was only the second loss in Thiago's storied career. *Diego Sanchez vs. Paulo Thiago - The fight was considered a personal Fight of the Year candidate. *Paulo Thiago vs. David Mitchell *Siyar Bahadurzada vs. Paulo Thiago - The fight was the UFC debut of the powerful Afghan striker Siyar Bahadurzada. *Dong Hyun Kim vs. Paulo Thiago Category:Welterweight fighters